


A Phone Call Away

by Applesaday



Series: A Million Ways to Say It [5]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, Non-magical AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-25
Updated: 2015-01-25
Packaged: 2018-03-09 01:28:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3231122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Applesaday/pseuds/Applesaday
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Regina hadn't expected that her wrong number mishap would lead to such an enjoyable conversational partner. For SQWeek</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Phone Call Away

**Author's Note:**

> Swan Queen Week v.4
> 
> Prompt 1: Meet Cute
> 
> Okay! So it's Swan Queen Week, and while I'm not going to participate on all of the days [I'm only going to do 3] I'd get started with the first prompt!
> 
> Also warning for sexist comments.

"H-"

"Listen here, Mr. Thompson, I don't much care for your excuses, but let me make one thing very clear. If you  **dare**  to screw up this badly once again and you'll rue the day you started to work for this company, am I clear?"

Silence.

"Uhm, listen lady, unless I got a sex change that I don't know about, and for the same price, had a memory wipe, I'm no Mr. Thompson, but I do have to admit, I don't envy him at all."

Regina frowned. "Who is this?"

"Definitely  _not_  Mr. Thompson. Now, if you're done chewing out a random stranger, I need to get going." With that, the person on the other side of the call hung up.

Looking down at her phone, Regina checked the number she had just dialed against the number that she had jotted down. She had completely bungled up the area code, no wonder.

Making sure she was dialing the correct number now, Regina took a deep breath before putting the phone to her ear as she got ready to berate the real Mr. Thompson.

* * *

Emma grumbled before she collapsed onto the bed once again.

"Who was that?" her best friend, Lacey, asked, coming to stand in the doorway.

"Wrong number. This really bitchy lady was yelling at an employee of hers." Emma shuddered. That there was the kind of boss she'd never want to have.

Lacey snickered. "Without even checking to see who she was talking to?"

"Nope,  _really_  wouldn't want to be that guy. Now come on, we need to get to work."

The two blonde roommates were coworkers holding minimum wage jobs while they waited for their big break. Lacey wanted to be a librarian, but so far, was having tough luck finding a library that was hiring. Emma, a writer, wasn't having much more luck with getting a publisher.

So they made their way to the diner, where they bused tables for a fairly decent pay. Thankfully today they had managed to snag shifts starting mid-morning, so at least they didn't need to start so early. And on a Monday that became a heavenly reprieve.

"Aren't you two a sight for sore eyes," their friend and co-worker, Ruby Lucas, greeted with a smile. Emma was certain that Ruby was focusing more on Lacey than herself, knowing that the two brunettes had requited crushes, although neither would admit or act on it.

"Yep, you can rejoice in your freedom," Emma grinned as she made her way around the counter, adjusting her apron.

"Hardly. Rory got down with a cold so I'm taking over her shift."

Lacey gave Ruby a quick side hug while adding, "Well don't despair Rubes, you'll have us to keep you company through the lunch rush."

All in all, it started out being a slow day for them, until Emma got saddled with the rudest customer imaginable.

"Excuse me, Miss," a slimy looking old man with a bald patch and an air of superiority and arrogance, was signalling her.

Coming to stand at the mouth of his booth, she looked expectantly at him. "Yes sir?"

"Your service is lacking greatly. I asked for my lunch 10 minutes ago, and I'm still waiting. And it doesn't look like you have that many customers, so what's taking so long?"

Emma steeled herself. He was going to be one of  _those_  customers. "I'm sorry sir, but you asked for a fairly large plate and Granny is doing her best, she is only one woman trying to cook for a decent crowd. We're not a fast food restaurant, we're a homely diner with good food."

The man gave a derisive snort. "Is that the bullshit excuse you've armed? And with 3 waitresses and one cook? If it's about eye candy, you can get the mousy-looking brunette over there with the strange accent to get behind the kitchen counter, she might be more useful there."

Oh that was it. Slamming her hand on the table, Emma unleashed fury. "Listen here. I don't know who you think you are, and neither do I care. But if you dare to insult my best friend like that, do  **not**  expect me to take it lightly, because _you_  sir, are a pig. And if you're in a hurry, go to the nearest fast-food restaurant. We certainly don't care to have your rude ass around."

Not breaking eye contact, she kept her scowl intact as she waited for the man to react.

"How dare you?! Clearly the only thing you've got going for yourself is looks, and not brains; certainly not diplomacy. Haven't you heard that the 'customer is always right' adage?"

"Not when they're being a sexist asshole." Emma stood her ground. She was good friends with Ruby, which was how she got the job, so she hoped that Granny wouldn't mind losing one customer due her indignation. He deserved it, and Granny was a fierce protector of women, taking no bullshit from misogynistic pigs, she'd understand. Otherwise she'd be out of a job.

The man huffed as he stood up. Throwing his napkin on the table, he wagged a finger at Emma. "You have made a grave mistake, young lady. You should know that Albert Spencer is not a man to be trifled with."

Crossing her arms and planting an arrogant smirk, Emma said, "If we're talking in third person, let me just say that Emma Swan doesn't care much for your attitude."

Clearly this man hadn't ever been knocked down a peg. After the door slammed closed, signifying that the man was gone, the whole diner erupted into applause. Emma finally relaxed, smiling a bit. She walked over to Lacey, who was still standing where she had been when Emma had glanced after Spencer pointed her out. Ruby was comforting her with soothing words, holding Lacey so that the latter was leaning sideways into the former, arms around Ruby's waist.

"Hey, you okay?" Emma asked.

Lacey nodded, flashing a grateful smile. "Thank you, Emma."

Emma shrugged it off with a smile, giving Lacey a comforting shoulder squeeze. "It's what friends do."

Hearing the bell ding, signifying that an order was ready, Emma made her way to the window, knowing that Granny probably wanted to have some words with her. Leaving the two women still holding the other, she took a deep breath and neared her destination.

She grabbed the two plates and chanced a glance at Granny. The woman was grinning at her, and gave her a wink. She did good.

* * *

"I'm so tired," Emma groaned, opening the apartment door and immediately heading to the couch, collapsing on it face down.

Lacey trailed behind, closing the door after her. "I'm sure, after your little altercation with Spencer, you must've been beat."

Emma said nothing, but hummed in agreement, muffled by the pillow her face was on.

Letting out a small chuckle, Lacey went to the kitchen to refrigerate the leftovers that Granny had sent them home with. They had already eaten dinner at the diner, but she had insisted they take home more food - "It's either going with you, or in the garbage, at least with you it's not going to waste." - so they had diligently taken the offered food. The perks of working there were the free meals, therefore not having to cook all the time. It was like having an actual granny, and for both women, who didn't have families to call their own, Granny was a treasure.

Hearing her phone buzz, Emma groaned as she flipped onto her back and fished out her phone from her jeans, looking at the caller ID before sighing and answering. "Look lady, I hate to break it to you, but you called the wrong number again, and I've had a pretty long and crappy day so I'm  _really_  not in the mood to be chewed out for Mr. Thompson's faults."

She had been ready to pull the phone away from her ear and hang up, but the woman on the other end of the line quickly interjected, "Wait! I wanted to talk to  _you_."

Emma paused, frowning despite the fact that she knew the other woman couldn't see her, and put the phone back to her ear. "Why?"

A deep breath preceded the answer. "I wanted to apologize for earlier. It wasn't very professional of me."

She smiled. At least the woman was kind enough to apologize for her fault, and she had no reason to keep a grudge with a stranger. "Apology accepted. So what  _did_  Mr. Thompson do to be on the receiving end of your ire?"

Emma honestly didn't expect she'd receive an actual answer; she thought she'd get a deflection or would be hung up on, so she was surprised when the woman on the end of the line sighed and said, "He made a rather grave error that made us lose a very important client. And losing one well-connected client can mean quite a loss for us in terms of future clients."

"Ouch, I can see why you'd be angry. Did you manage to get a hold of him?"

The woman hummed. "Indeed. Suffice it to say that I struck the right tone."

Emma chuckled. She had no doubt about it, if the beginning of the angry tirade she'd heard was any indication.

"What about you?"

Frowning again, Emma tilted her head and asked, "What about me?"

"You mentioned having a bad day. What happened?"

This felt strangely surreal. She had never met this woman, this was the second time she had ever talked to her. She had no idea who she could be, and yet she felt like she could trust this woman. Emma was sure that the lady on the other end of the line must have felt the same, having shared her work complaints with her. "Just a stupid customer who was being sexist and insulted one of my best friends. So I called him out for it."

"He sounds like quite an ass. Did you get in trouble for it with your boss?"

"Nah, I managed to keep my job. I think even my boss wanted him out of there. She probably would've kicked him out herself if I hadn't already driven him to do it."

"Understandable. Hopefully you won't have to deal with him again."

Smiling, she said, "Judging by the way he stormed out, I won't worry too much. Unless his vague threats about nobody messing with him was actually supposed to mean something."

The woman chuckled. "I doubt it. People often spew out empty threats hoping to see if someone will fall for it." After a beat, she cleared her throat, and said, "Well anyway, I have to get going, but I am really sorry for the mix up today."

"I don't mind, I got to talk to you," Emma responded. She wasn't even sure where the vague flirt had come from, but she was ready to deny it, or claim that her sleepiness turned off her filter. Something in her didn't want to alienate woman.

Light laughter reached her ears, and then the lady said, "Goodnight dear."

* * *

Regina was typing away at her computer, trying to finish the report for her meeting in a few days with the shareholders. The downside to being CEO of a prestigious financial company was the amount of work she had to do, and despite her ease at dealing with numbers, it was tiring work. Hearing her cellphone ring, she automatically picked it up and answered it. "Regina Mills speaking."

"Wow, are you a mind reader?"

She instantly recognized the voice of the caller. It was the woman she had accidentally called yesterday and released her angry tirade. "I don't believe so, why?" she answered with a small smile.

"I had actually been calling to ask you for your name, but this is definitely easier."

"And why, pray tell would you require my name?" Regina asked, her smile not diminishing.

"Just so that I know what to add to my contacts list. See you're currently 'Angry lady who hates Mr. Thompson' and I think that that isn't fair for you at all, plus I like to put a name to the uh...voice."

Regina leaned back a bit in her chair, smile upgrading to a smirk. "I see. Do you always put such...characteristic names to your contacts?"

"Oh yeah, I definitely do. Not to make you feel bad, but you're really not the only person that calls my number by accident. I have this old lady, sweet Mrs. O'Reiley, who thinks I'm the pizza place by her house. She calls me every week without fail and orders a small pepperoni pizza with garlic bread and dip."

She let out a peal of laughter at hearing that story. "And what happens when Mrs. O'Reiley doesn't receive her pizza?"

"Oh she actually does receive her pizza. I call the pizza place for her."

"You do? Why?" Regina asked, intrigued by this turn of events.

"The first time she called me, I tried to explain to her that she had the wrong number, but lady was hell-bent on her conviction that she had dialed the correct number. She wouldn't take no for an answer and I felt kinda bad for her, so I've been playing messenger for the past year between an old lady and a pizza place. So in my contacts I have Mrs. O'Riley's pizza place, and Mrs. O'Riley and in brackets I wrote: Pizzeria Delicia, which is the pizza place, and that way I remember what I'm supposed to answer with."

"Well that's very kind of you to do that. Speaking of contact names, what is your name?"

"Mine would be Emma Swan. So, what are you up to?"

Regina hadn't expected that her wrong number mishap would lead to such an enjoyable conversational partner. Emma certainly seemed like she had some interesting stories to tell, and since Regina got bored easily, this turned into a reprieve. She told Emma about her budget reports and upcoming meetings, and then she asked Emma the same thing and found out that Emma - who was apparently a waitress - had a day off today, as was normal for her on Tuesdays, so she was just lounging around.

"Gives me time to work on my writing."

"Oh?" Regina perked up. "You write?"

"Yeah, I'm hoping to one day become a published author, but so far that's not going anywhere," Emma responded, and she could just note a hint of dejectedness in her tone.

"Well, I haven't personally read any of your stories, but if the way you tell them is any indication, I'm sure you'll get there one day," Regina assured her. She wasn't one for empty compliments, so she hoped that Emma wouldn't think she was brushing the matter off.

But Emma could note the sincerity in the comment. "Thanks. Well I should let you go, you probably have plenty to deal with, and I don't think I'd make a believable excuse as to why you don't have the budget reports done."

Regina shook her head and rolled her eyes playfully before remembering that Emma couldn't see her. "It's a good thing I get started on things early I suppose."

"Well good on you for not being a procrastinator. Talk to you another time, Regina."

"Have a nice day, Emma."

* * *

The next two days were hectic for both women.

Wednesday, Emma had gotten saddled with Ruby's shift for the entire day, since her friend got down with a cold of her own. And when Regina called, her guilt skyrocketed as she pressed the  _Ignore Call_  button. She sent Regina a quick text explaining why she couldn't pick up her call, hoping it'd help to show why she did it, and that she wasn't purposely ignoring her. After she sent the text, a million questions and worries flooded her mind. What if Regina was offended? What if she had accidentally called her and actually had wanted nothing to do with her? Maybe Regina had already forgotten about her and some co-worker decided to prank-call using Regina's phone.

So she was ecstatic when she received a message that said:  _Don't worry about it, Emma, I hope your day goes well, and no more rude customers tire you out._

Emma wouldn't be so quick as to classify this as a crush, but she'd just be denying the truth that she felt something for the other woman. Even though she'd never met Regina before, she just connected to her, which hadn't ever happened so quickly, not since she became friends with Lacey. Regina's voice was so melodic, and conversation seemed to flow easily for them, at least thus far. She hoped that their future conversations wouldn't die out as time passed and topics were exhausted. Regina made her days more interesting. So she sent a quick thank you text, and then got back into the fray.

Thursday, it was Regina who had to apologize and bow out of a call, explaining that she had a meeting with shareholders. Emma had totally understood, and Regina couldn't fight the smile. It had been a long while since someone had made her smile like this. The obvious exception was her son, little Henry, but he was an adorable child, it'd be impossible to not smile at him. It wasn't that she was falling for someone that she'd never met, but the conversations intrigued her. Deep down she knew that she did have feelings for Emma. But she was a reserved woman, she had always been, meaning she didn't exactly wear her heart on her sleeves.

When Friday came around, both women sent simultaneous texts.

_Emma: Hey, got another long shift, won't be able to talk today, sorry :( How was the shareholder meeting?_

_Regina: I've got a surprise meeting, seems like Mr. Thompson's screw-up wasn't an entire disaster, and therefore I won't be able to answer your call._

_Regina: The meeting went well actually! And I completely understand, you have no need to apologize. Good luck with your shift!_

_Emma: Thanks!_

* * *

It was 10pm, and Emma was already in bed, beyond exhausted. But she still picked up her phone and sent Regina a text. Even though she said earlier that she wouldn't be able to talk today, Emma still felt compelled a simple 'hi' text.

She got a response nearly immediately:  _Hey, are you done with your shift? Can I call you?_

Emma was surprised. She'd have thought that Regina would perhaps be out tonight or too busy to answer her message. She quickly sent back a response:  _Yep, to both :)_

When her phone buzzed, she eagerly picked it up. "Hey Regina!"

With as much gusto as her conversational partner, Regina said, "Hey Emma, how was work?"

"Oh you know, same old same old. Complaining customers, needy customers, kind customers. How was your meeting?"

"It went fine, we got the new clients, but I got saddled with a mountain of paperwork."

Emma felt bad for Regina, that didn't sound like fun. "Bleh, are you going to have to work overtime for it?"

"Yes, I'm doing it now."

Emma blinked, eyes widening, sure she was hearing wrong. "Hold up, you're at work,  _now_?"

"I am," Regina succinctly responded.

"Is that even legal? I mean it's 10pm on a Friday. Is your boss even paying you for this overtime?"

Regina began to laugh then, and Emma frowned. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No no, I'm sorry," Emma heard Regina take a deep breath to stop the laughter. "Sorry, I was needing that laugh. But actually, I'm the CEO so..." she left the sentence hanging, unsure how to close it.

"Holy shit, you are?" was Emma's dignified response.

"Yes. Hence the shareholders meetings."

Emma felt like a veritable idiot. It was how they had met, with Regina berating an employee of hers. Of course only people high up on the corporate foodchain would attend a shareholder meeting and threaten employees. "Right, I didn't make the connection with the whole shareholder thing, sorry."

"Don't apologize Emma, you couldn't have known," Regina was quick to assure.

"Yeah, I'm not really well-versed with corporate roles," Emma said, bashfully.

"Well maybe one day I'll explain it to you."

It sounded like a promise, and Emma took it as such, "I'll hold you to that. Uhm...I'm not bothering you, right?"

"Not at all. I'm an excellent multitasker, besides, I'm the one who asked to talk to you."

That was true. "I'm sure your friends can't be too happy with your long hours."

"Oh, well, I don't have too many friends, and they understand. Besides, they're busy too."

"Are your friends CEO's too?" Emma asked with a smile.

"Not exactly. One of them is abroad for a meeting with her fashion company," - Emma let out an impressed whistle at that - "another one is throwing on a play on Broadway, and my other friend is babysitting."

"Babysitting? At this hour?!"

"Yes, my son actually."

Emma wondered how many times she could screw up and shove her foot in her mouth before Regina hung up on her for sheer stupidity. Of course she'd have a son, and probably a husband who had his own company or was well-off. One of those fancy ivy-leaguers who thought himself as too good for the common rabble. Just when she was feeling her prospects plummet, Regina added, "The downsides of being a single mother and CEO I suppose. I can't spend as much time with my son. He understands though."

"He sounds like a nice kid, what's he like?"

Regina began to gush about Henry. Of course she kept some things to herself, such as Henry's name. Despite the easy conversations and finding herself easy to talk to Emma, she still was no fool, and had reservations about sharing Henry's name to what should supposedly be a complete stranger.

But she wasn't a complete stranger. Neither woman thought that anymore.

2 hours went by and they talked about everything. Their experiences growing up - Emma's less than jovial and lonely one, contrasted with Regina's with her parents and sister, the women all lawyers, and her father, a financial tycoon - and how they dealt with it. They found out their favourite foods, good books that they were reading. When Regina had admitted that she was fluent in Spanish, French and Italian, Emma was impressed.

"I did the whole 'Spanish in high school' gig and more than 8 years later, I've already forgotten most of it," Emma explained.

"Well perhaps I can teach you," Regina offered.

Emma chuckled, choosing - for her sanity - to ignore the vaguely flirtatious tone of that offer. "Regina, at this point you've already said you'd teach me a gajillion things, including corporate roles, cooking without blowing things sky-high, and now Spanish?"

"Well sure, I don't expect that it'll be such a hard task...well perhaps the cooking one yes, if your poor toaster is any indication." Regina was smirking by now.

Letting out a feigned huff, Emma exclaimed, "It was one time!"

"Yes, and the fire department must have you on their watch list," Regina readily riposted.

"Note to self: don't tell Regina anymore stories about my mishaps and failures in the kitchen."

"But I enjoy hearing them! You are a very entertaining storyteller."

"I guess it's good then that I'm pursuing a career in writing." Emma couldn't help herself and let out a yawn. It goes without saying that by this point, Regina's work had been long forgotten. "Holy shit, we've been talking for more than 2 hours."

Regina looked at the clock in surprise. Emma was right. "You know what they say, time goes fast-"

"-when you're having fun, yeah." Emma let out another yawn. "Sorry, I promise I'm not saying this conversation is boring, it's just been a long day."

"We can hang up if you wish, and we can talk tomorrow."

Emma was beginning to nod off, but she still countered with, "But then who will keep you company?"

Regina didn't fight the warm feeling that flooded into her heart at hearing that. Emma seemed like she truly cared about Regina. "I'll be fine, Emma. Go to sleep."

When another yawn made its way out of Emma's mouth, she relented. "Fine. Text me when you get home, okay?"

Regina was surprised at that line, to say the least. "Oh! Okay, yes, I will." It had been a long time since someone was so adamant about knowing that Regina was okay.

"Good, stay safe, and I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Good night, Emma."

"'Night Regina."

* * *

"I'm just saying that maybe you shouldn't bare your heart out to a complete stranger!" Lacey said.

It was Monday, and after spending various hours throughout the weekend getting to know Regina, Lacey was a little bit paranoid about her best friend's new conversational partner.

"She's not a complete stranger Lace!" Emma countered.

"Wha'd I miss?" Ruby was back to work, but she was still getting over her congestion, so she sounded a bit stuffed.

Lacey fielded this one before Emma could explain. "Remember that rude lady that accidentally called Emma to chew her out?" Ruby nodded yes, it was one of the first things they had told her last Monday. "Well apparently now they're budding friends-"

Emma jumped in. "We're not friends, just talking..."

Her best friend levelled with a look. "Fine, not friends, girlfriends-"

"Seriously?! We're not dating either."

Ruby looked at Emma curiously. "Wait, so you're not dating, but you're not friends either? Why?"

Emma bit her lip, but said nothing, going to take the orders of their newest clients. How could she explain to her friends that she was certain that a CEO of a big financial corporation probably wasn't looking to be friends with a lowly waitress? It seemed like the most unusual thing in the world. Emma was probably just an easy way to pass the time. Regina probably thought Emma was trying to be friendly to her in order to take advantage of her connections.

Growing up in the foster system, Emma never believed in altruism. Everyone always had ulterior motives for what they did. Meal tickets, scapegoats, employees. At the end of the day, she had always been just a pawn, meant to serve a purpose. When that purpose was fulfilled, she was thrown back into the system. Transitioning into adulthood proved that the world in general was much the same.

Shaking the dreary thoughts out of her head, she went to greet the newest arrivals, probably mother and son from the looks of it. It was Spring Break, and kids were enjoying their freedom.

"Hey there! Welcome to Granny's diner. I'm Emma, I'll be your server, can I get you guys started on any drinks?" Emma greeted automatically, the practised speech spewing flawlessly from her tongue.

She took the order from the woman and child. They were pretty nice, sometimes a rarity in her line of work, so she grinned at the pixie-haired brunette, and went to grab the kid a paper and some crayons for him to doodle on.

When she returned to deposit the order slip for Granny, Lacey and Ruby were apparently still discussing Regina.

"Well there's nothing wrong with making a connection with someone unexpected," Lacey was explaining, "but I still think Emma should be careful."

"I am careful," Emma interjected. "I'm not sharing my life story with her."

Lacey raised a sceptical eyebrow at her friend. "You talk hours upon hours with her, I call bullshit on that."

Emma scoffed. "I'm not! She and I don't share everything. She doesn't know where I work, I don't know what company she's CEO of, hell I don't even know her kid's name! Besides, I'm a waitress, what the hell kind of incentive could I provide for her? She's the one who must be paranoid."

Ruby whipped out her cellphone, and after a few seconds, she held out her phone for Emma. "Mills Financial Group. Seems like your lady is a pretty powerful woman in NYC."

Lacey took the phone before Emma could glance at it, reading everything from that little screen voraciously. Emma rolled her eyes and went to grab the drinks her clients had asked for.

Returning to the table, she saw that the woman was alone, and a quick glance to the backroom showed the kid was in the lineup for the bathroom.

"He's going to the bathroom by himself huh? Pretty smart kid you've got."

The woman smiled. "Oh he's very smart, definitely. But he's not mine, I'm just babysitting him."

"Oh! My apologies-"

"It's fine, don't worry about it it. I'm Mary Margaret." She held her hand out as a sign of goodwill.

"Emma. But you already knew that," Emma added with a smirk, shaking her hand. "I don't believe I've seen you here before, new gig?"

"Oh no actually, Henry's wanted to go to Boston for the longest time, and his mother booked us an all-expense paid trip so he could visit."

Emma was impressed. A little bit jealous, but impressed. "Wow, you must be loving this job. So are you like a live-in nanny or?"

Mary Margaret chuckled, shaking her head. "Oh not at all. I have strange hours, that's for sure, but definitely not live-in."

"But still though, getting to go on a trip with them, that's pretty awesome."

"Actually, I'm here with Henry alone. His mom has a pretty busy week so she had to bow out."

Emma flinched. "He can't be loving that."

Mary Margaret made a so-so gesture with her head. "He understands his mom is pretty important and has a lot of work to do, but of course he misses her."

"Smart and compassionate. Wow, if nothing else, this lady knows how to raise a good kid," Emma concluded. The 'food's ready' bell rang, and Emma perked up. "If you'll excuse me, duty calls."

Emma went to deliver the food to another customer, and returned to Ruby and Lacey, who thankfully had now moved on with their topics. Emma was vaguely listening, so she whipped out her phone and sent a quick text to Regina, asking her how she was doing.

She received a response after a few minutes, letting her know that she was going into yet another meeting. She didn't envy Regina, those meetings sounded like a drag.

* * *

For the next few days, Mary Margaret and Henry were regulars at the diner. She hadn't been there on Tuesday, as it was her day off, and Henry had been very happy to see her the day after.

"Hey Emma! Do you know how to make paper flowers?" Emma was touched that Henry seemed to remember her name. It was always the most common thing to have people forget or not bother to remember their waitress' name.

"I do indeed, want me to show you?"

It was a slow day at the diner so Emma had time to kill. Henry nodded enthusiastically, and she made a gesture for him to scooch over in his seat. Once he did that, Emma grabbed one of the paper placemats, and got to work. Mary Margaret looked fondly at the waitress and the child. Henry could certainly make friends fast, and Emma had a way with kids, that much was obvious.

The door opened and in walked the most gorgeous man Mary Margaret had ever seen. He was dressed in the US postal service uniform jacket, and made his way to the counter, to talk to the other waitress on duty today and drop off a package.

Then it seemed he glanced over to their table, and saw Mary Margaret looking intently at him. She looked away, blushing, and tried to focus back on Henry and Emma, who were happily chatting as she explained the process so that Henry could follow along with his own paper.

Just her luck that the man was heading right their way, or so Mary Margaret noted from the corner of her eyes.

"Hey Emma," the mailman greeted.

Emma looked up and grinned, going to hug him. "David! Hey how are you!"

"I'm doing alright, working as always. Just dropped off a package with Rory. What are you up to?" David asked, jerking his head to the table she had been sitting at.

"Oh just teaching Henry here how to make a paper flower. They're visiting from New York and they're growing to love the diner. Henry, Mary Margaret, this is David Nolan, my friend and one of the best postmen in the country."

Henry's eyes widened. "That's so cool!" he exclaimed, before bombarding him with questions.

Mary Margaret looked fondly at the scene before remembering that they had a busy schedule today, and jumped up, heading to the cash register to pay for the meal. She left Emma and Henry to wrap up their little craft workshop, and the latter to finish interrogating the mailman.

As she finished paying, she turned and saw that David was standing in front of her, giving her a nervous smile.

"Oh, David! I didn't see you. Can I help you with something?" she asked.

David cleared his throat, and flashed a charming smile at her. "I was wondering if maybe you wanted to grab coffee sometime?"

She gave him an apologetic look and shook her head. "I'd love to David, but unfortunately I'm here alone with Henry, plus tomorrow's our last day here and he wants to do a lot."

He looked a bit dejected at her answer, but nodded in understanding. Making a split-second decision, she quickly added, "But if you want, I can give you my number, and we can keep in touch by phone?"

David's grin flooded back, and he nodded enthusiastically, going to fish his phone out of his pocket so he could exchange numbers with Mary Margaret.

Emma and Henry were watching from the table, and she side-whispered, "Looks like your babysitter's got a crush."

Henry giggled, and picked up his flower. "Thanks for the flower Emma!"

"Sure thing kid, gonna give it to someone special?" she asked.

"Yeah! My mom!" Henry responded, giving her a toothy grin.

Emma chuckled at his enthusiasm. His mom must be one lucky woman. "Oh yeah? Well why not make it two? Double the love."

He squealed as she held out the flower for him. He was going to make his mom a very happy woman, Emma was sure of it.

* * *

"So how was your day?"

It was Thursday evening and Emma was relaxing by lounging on the bed, and talking with Regina.

"Same old same old, lots of customers, saying goodbye to some new friends," Emma sighed. Henry had not been happy to leave.

"Oh? What happened to them?"

"I didn't tell you about Mary Margaret and Henry?" Emma exclaimed. "Well they were just the cutest. They were visiting from New York, Mary Margaret is Henry's babysitter, and Henry was the cutest 7-year old imaginable. He was so enthusiastic and polite! And Mary Margaret's a gem. Like really, always so patient, and really down to earth. So anyway it was their last day visiting Boston today, and they had been eating their meals at the diner so-"

"Emma," Regina interrupted, swallowing the lump at her throat.

Emma paused, and flinched. "Shoot, was I rambling? I was totally rambling."

"No! No it's fine, it's just...Emma, that was my son."

The waitress blinked, trying to process what Regina just told her, and what Henry and Mary Margaret had been telling her about Henry's mom. "Holy cow, I didn't realize. Busy woman in New York, of course it would be you. Small world, huh?"

Regina chuckled, and then asked, "And where did you find out that I'm from New York? I never mentioned it."

For once, Emma was thankful that Regina couldn't see her, since she was sure she was blushing like a tomato. "Oh, right, that's because Ruby searched you up..."

"And why was she searching me up?" Regina continued with her line of questioning, hoping Emma could tell her teasing tone.

"Because we were talking about you..."

"Dare I even ask why?"

Although Emma could tell that Regina was just teasing her, she still indulged her with an answer, "Lacey was telling Ruby about you, because she's convinced we talk a lot, and they were trying to figure out what it could mean, since we know everything about each other, according to them. When I told them that I didn't know everything about you, Ruby googled you."

As though summoned, Lacey peeked her head inside the room. "Is that Regina? I want to talk to her."

Emma blanched, and cleared her throat, shaking her head profusely. It seemed there was no way out of this as Lacey held out her hand for Emma's phone. She begrudgingly handed the phone off, hoping Lacey wasn't about to embarrass Emma or drive Regina away. When Lacey winked, Emma knew she was fucked.

"Regina? Yeah hi, I'm Lacey- Oh she's talked often about me? Well I just have one warning for you. You break her heart, we're coming after you," with a smirk that gave Emma the impression of the cat having eaten the canary, Lacey tossed the phone back to Emma and left the room.

"Sorry about my friend," Emma scrambled to say before Regina got the wrong idea. Well, it's not like dating her was such a wild idea for Emma, but she didn't want to assume things or make things weird.

Thankfully, it seemed like Regina had taken things in stride. "It's fine, Emma. So, you were telling me about having met Henry."

Emma was thankful for the subject change. "Yeah, you're raising a great kid, Regina. He was so adorable. Oh also, you've got at least one gift heading your way from him. I say this because I inadvertently taught him to make it, and gave my example to him to give to you...except I didn't know I was giving it to you, but yeah."

Regina was flattered. And speechless.

"Oh and by the way, I might be responsible for Mary Margaret's new crush. So if she comes back all lovey-dovey, you can chalk that up to me."

Smiling, Regina asked, "Oh really? How so?"

Emma proceeded to tell her the story of David showing up the day before, and Mary Margaret's response to it.

Oh Regina was going to get quite a lot of mileage out of teasing her friend over this. She checked her clock and realized the time. "Speaking of them, I have to go pick Henry and Mary Margaret up at the airport. We'll talk another time?"

"Yeah for sure!" After they hung up, Emma exhaled, glad that things ended well. It was probably also good that Emma didn't mention that at another point yesterday, Ruby showed her an image of Regina that she'd found, and Emma's prompt response of gaping unabashedly at the drop-dead gorgeous woman in the picture. By that point, there was no denying: Emma had a huge crush on Regina Mills.

* * *

"Mommy!" Henry exclaimed, crashing into her arms.

"Hello sweetheart, how was your flight?" Regina asked, glad to have her son back. Even though she trusted Mary Margaret with her life - and by extension, her son - she still worried. From what she'd been told, those were her maternal instincts at work.

"It was fun! Mar fell asleep!" Henry giggled.

Mary Margaret blushed, not denying. They started to walk back towards Regina's car, with Henry babbling about their trip, hand in his mother's grasp.

"And we made a new friend!" Henry added, stopping. "We made flowers for you!"

Regina glanced puzzled at Henry, wondering why they stopped. He reached for his backpack, and ruffled through it before he pulled out two paper flowers and held them out to her. They were a bit banged up from being stuffed inside a cramped backpack, but they looked gorgeous. "Henry, these are beautiful!"

He flashed a big smile at her and added. "I made this one," he pointed to a more wilted and wrinkled flower. "Emma made this one!"

She softly gasped. Not that she had doubted Emma in the least, but hearing this confirmation, it filled her with an inexplicable feeling. She thought back to what Lacey said when she hijacked Emma's phone. To break someone's heart, you first had to hold it, which meant: romantically involved, or dating. And if Lacey believed they were dating...then that meant Emma had at least a little bit of a crush on Regina...could it be?

"We even got a picture with her!" Henry added, turning to Mary Margaret. The latter quickly fished out her phone, and right there in the middle of the airport, Regina saw the first picture of Emma Swan. If she wasn't crushing on her before, she was now.

* * *

For the next few weeks, everything went about the same for the two of them. They spoke nearly every single day during the week for at most an hour, when neither of them were busy, and kept in touch by text during the weekends and on days when either of the two, or both of them were busy. Even Henry had joined in on a couple of talks, absolutely ecstatic that he could still talk to Emma.

Soon enough, March gave way to April, and Regina found herself sitting on her office, phone in hand. But alas, it wasn't Emma on the other side of the line.

"I told you, Kathryn, I'm not interested in seeing anyone!" Regina intoned, using her free hand to massage her temple. Her friend was well-meaning, but way too persistent.

"And I'm telling you that you needn't close yourself up like this! What happened to the Regina that loved to flirt at those high society parties?"

"She got pregnant and had a child," Regina deadpanned. The last time that she had given her heart had been enough to swear herself off from it. She also had a few other reasons. She now had Henry to look out for. She didn't want him to get attached to someone temporary, or find out that Henry didn't like them. That would be an instantaneous deal breaker.

Kathryn huffed. "Yeah, but you usually at least give them a try. Is this about that Emma girl?"

"What?" The hitch in her voice sold her away.

"The one that Mar keeps on talking about that you and Henry talk to. The girl from Boston."

Regina sighed, leaning back on her chair, shifting the phone to her other ear. "Yes, she's becoming a fast friend of mine..."

"And you like her!" Kathryn gushed. "So tell me all about her. Leave no details, otherwise I'll have to crowd-source and eventually hijack your phone to get this girl's number myself."

So Regina told her. About the conversations, getting to know Emma, finding that it was so easy to talk to her, how she made her laugh, all the stories that Emma told.

"Wow, you are head over heels for her. When's the wedding?" Regina was sure that if Kathryn had been sitting in front of her, she'd be winking and nudging her.

"Har har. We're not even dating."

"And why the hell not? It's clear she likes you-"

Regina quickly stopped that sentence from continuing by countering, "Hold up. We're just talking, and we're friends, nothing more."

"Oh come on Regina. Give it a try."

"I've never even met her!" she was quick to add.

Kathryn was not deterred. "Well you might one day. And come on, you didn't get all the way to this point in life by sitting on your butt and doubting yourself. The Regina Mills I know goes and gets what she wants. So, go get her!"

* * *

Emma was in the middle of the supermarket when her phone rang, and she answered it with a smile. "Hey Regina. So help me decide, Froot Loops or Frosted Flakes?"

Regina chuckled before letting out a hum as she thought. "Or, you could get a cereal with less sugar."

Even though Regina wouldn't see it, she pouted. "Party pooper. Doesn't Henry eat sugary cereal?"

"Yes, on occasion. But I'm assuming that's not the case with you," Regina responded.

"Then what would you suggest, Ms. Mills?" Emma asked, leaning back on her cart while she waited for Regina's answer.

"Perhaps some All Bran."

"I should've played the lottery. Somehow I knew you would suggest that. But fine, I'll buy a box of that, and a box of Frosted Flakes. Better, your Majesty?"

Regina was laughing by now. Once she caught her breath, she said, "Yes. Do you have much more to do with your groceries?"

"Not that much more. Just buying essentials. Why?"

"Yes I can see that the Frosted Flakes are absolutely critical to your stock." Regina was hoping to avoid responding Emma's question.

"Well hey, breakfast is the most important meal of the day, I thought you'd agree with that."

"I do, just not with Frosted Flakes."

Emma let out a dramatic sigh, but then remembered her earlier unanswered question. "So why were you asking?"

"Oh, I just have something to ask you..."

"And it can't be asked in the middle of the supermarket?" Emma asked with an unseen smirk.

"I could, but I'd like for you to not be distracted, and I'm afraid that in a busy supermarket, it might not be the best idea."

So Emma conceded to call her back as soon as she got home. She was curious as to what Regina wanted to ask. Could it be that she wanted this...whatever it was, to end? She didn't sound upset, so hopefully that wasn't it. Thankfully the lineup wasn't that long, so she managed to get back to the apartment quickly enough, and after she put everything away where it was supposed to, she took a deep breath, and called Regina.

While the phone rang, she sat down on the couch. When Regina picked up, Emma couldn't fight the smile off of her face. She was smitten with Regina, that was a fact that she couldn't deny. After nearly a month and a half of talking nearly every day, she begun to wonder what it'd be like to meet her, and get to know her. Dating her was a dream she wished not to indulge on, because otherwise she'd go into this daydream spiral and be left with this want for something that had very little chance of happening, since there was no way Regina would want to date her. But Lacey and Ruby were both trying to convince her to try, though she hadn't yet worked the courage to do so.

"So, what was it that you wanted to ask? I'm kinda curious now."

"Well," Emma heard Regina take a deep breath, like she was steeling herself. Maybe she hadn't been so off in her guess, and this was goodbye. "I'm sort of weary to ask because I don't want to ruin our friendship, but here goes nothing. Emma, would you like to eventually go out on a date with me?"

Emma was sure that if she had any less self-control, she'd have dropped the phone. Thinking that Regina would assume silence as no, she quickly went to say, "Yes! Of course I will!" then she registered what that actually meant. "You like me? Because I like you, but I didn't think you shared my feelings."

Regina let out a laugh, both from relief and Emma's adorableness. "Of course I do. I can't even explain it Emma, but since I've started to talk to you, you've made my life more interesting. And even Henry's been happier."

"Same with me. My humdrum days get a lot more livelier with you. And it's impossible not to like Henry. He's an adorable kid." Emma was blushing by now with Regina's comment. "So, when will this date happen?"

"Well I sometimes am asked to swing by Boston, so we'll see soon enough."

* * *

Turned out that by next week, Regina got her chance.

"Sorry to bother you Ms. Mills, but there seems to be an issue over by our Boston branch. Do you want me to send Weston over?"

Regina practically jumped at this opening. "No, it's fine, I'll go myself."

The next day, Regina was driving her rented car to the address Mar had supplied for Granny's diner. Mary Margaret was ecstatic at having heard her plans for a date with Emma. It was going to be a surprise, so Regina had planned on surprising Emma at the diner first, then head to her meeting at noon. She had already booked their dinner for that night at well-known restaurant. She didn't want to overwhelm Emma with a high-end place, knowing that she wasn't a big fan of people who waved their money around, but she still wanted to treat her with a wonderful dinner.

She found a place to park down the block, and then walked over to the diner, making her way inside. She saw that there weren't that many people inside the place, and she checked the time. It was 9:40. Emma said her shift started at 9:30, so where was she?

"Hi there, welcome to Granny's Diner, if you want to take a seat, I'll be right over there to get your order." She looked at the server who spoke to her, and guessed that this was Aurora, who preferred to be called Rory, a shy but well-meaning girl who worked with Emma.

Approaching the counter, Regina said, "Actually, I'm looking for Emma, do you know where she is?"

"Oh, I think she might be running late. In fact, she's coming in now."

Regina looked to the door, and her heart skipped a beat as she saw Emma approaching.

* * *

Today was not Emma's day. Her alarm clock had failed to wake her, and her bus had been late, so now she was scrambling to get to work, dodging ice puddles. She scrambled inside and didn't even pay attention to anything and anyone as she shrugged off her jacket, heading to the other side of the counter to drop off her things.

"Sorry I'm late Rory, you have no idea the crazy day I've been having, I-" then Emma saw Regina, and she froze.

Regina let out the smallest of chuckles, sauntering up to where the blonde stood, and without saying anything, she cupped Emma's face with both her hands, and brought their lips together for a kiss. Neither much minded that they were in the middle of a diner, or that the six patrons, along with Rory and Granny herself, were gaping. When they broke apart, they were both grinning goofily.

"You're here!" Emma blurted.

Regina nodded. "I am."

"Unless you're one of those fancy holograms..."

She let out a laugh, going to kiss Emma again.

Granny soon came out to clear her throat and glare at them playfully. They both blushed and Emma invited Regina to stay for a while. She agreed, explaining to Emma that she had a meeting at noon. So Regina sat down at an empty booth by the back of the diner and watched as Emma waltzed around, taking orders and talking to customers. She was mesmerized getting to watch the waitress unabashedly as she was. Every now and then Emma would swing by her table to give her a kiss and fill her glass of water. At one point, she was served an apple pastry and coffee.

"Wh-" Regina began to ask.

"If my memory serves me right, you like your coffee black, and apple pastries are something that you occasionally indulge on, so there you go," Emma explained.

Emma got her thanks via a kiss which left her very flustered. Emma was glad that neither Lacey nor Ruby were here. They'd be having a field day by teasing her.

"So, would you be free for dinner tonight?" Regina asked, taking her fork and digging in to the pastry.

Emma nodded. "Yep, I should be good. Where do you want to meet?"

Regina hummed in thought as she ate her food. She swallowed and said, "Give my compliments to Granny for the pastry. It's delicious! But anyway, I was thinking of picking you up at your apartment?"

"Oh sure! Let me give you the address." After jotting down the information as well as a little map for reference on a napkin, Emma asked, "So where are we going? Is it casual or fancy?"

Regina put the napkin in her purse before answering. "It's in between. The restaurant is downtown, named The Moosehead Steakhouse? I've been told it's pretty good."

Emma gaped. "How did you get reservations for it?"

Giving Emma a look, she said, "Guess."

"Oh right, CEO perks," Emma laughed.

* * *

Dinner had been wonderful, and both women were in agreement that it was one of the best dates they'd ever had. Talk flowed freely with them, just like it did when they had been on the phone, but now was the added bonus of getting to look at one another.

By the time dinner was done, Regina was hoping this would become a long-term thing. Emma was thinking much along the same lines, and she smiled at Regina as they waited for the valet to bring around the brunette's car.

"Thank you for dinner, it was perfect," Emma gushed, giving Regina a peck on the cheek. Oh how she wished this night would never end.

Regina was on cloud nine with how happy she felt, here with Emma. Seeing the car arrive, and with her arm still around Emma, she leaned in and whispered in her ear, "Would you like to return to my hotel room?"

Then again, it seemed like the night was only beginning.

It was a chore trying to keep their hands to themselves on the ride back - and in Regina's case, her eyes on the road as well - but they somehow managed. The elevator ride showed a little less restraint. So much so that at the 3 floors they stopped, they were met with flushed faces and stuttered explanations that they would take the next elevator.

After they stumbled in through the door and locked it behind them, the real fun began.

* * *

"Next time something exciting like this happens, you call me right away, capisce?" Ruby was grilling her for having missed all the excitement from the day before. She loved gossip like how some people loved chocolate.

Emma sighed and turned to her friend, leveling her with a glare. "Even if it's on your day off?"

"Especially then! God Emma, something finally exciting happens in your life and I'm not there to witness it! How'd Lacey take the news?"

Emma snorted in laughter. "A hyperactive madwoman best describes her. Last time I saw her like this was when she had a 20 page paper due the next day and she was still on page 12," - Emma shuddered at the memory - "I honestly thought Lacey was a goner with all the coffee she was drinking. But this time it was less scary and less doom-and-gloom..."

"That sounds like Lacey alright. So, are you going to spill any deets over...ah...the sex?" Ruby wagged her eyebrows suggestively, and Emma had to fight the urge to beg the linoleum floor to swallow her whole.

Thankfully, Granny had perfect timing. "Ruby! Less gossiping, more working!"

With that, Emma got back to work. But her mind was filled with a solitary thought. She wanted this to last with Regina, and there wasn't anything truly tying her to Boston, so maybe it was time to start searching for a job in New York, and move to be closer.

* * *

By the time May rolled around, Emma had decided to cash in her vacation days, and head to New York for a week, go surprise the little family she's been growing to love, and maybe start researching on places to live and where to work at. She didn't want to impose by going to live with the Mills, so she would bring Mary Margaret into her plan and ask her to help her navigate through the transition, while also keeping it secret from Regina.

As she was packing, she heard Lacey standing at her door. "You know, I don't think I've ever seen you fall for someone so deeply and so fast."

"I can't explain it Lace. It's like we clicked, and things went from there. Plus, this will only be for a week."

Lacey chuckled. "And then two, and then next thing you know I'll be a crying mess as we say goodbye and you go off to bigger things in New York."

Emma went to go hug her best friend and said, "You know I'll keep in touch with you, and besides, you could always come with me?"

"We'll see." Emma knew the reason why. Lacey's crush was right here in Boston, and she knew Ruby would never leave Granny to manage the diner by herself.

But now, she had a train to catch.

Mary Margaret would also be helping her with this secret trip, and she hoped to surprise Regina just as much as she had been when Regina had showed up a month back. It seemed so long ago, but throughout that month they'd kept their nearly daily talks, and had officially become girlfriends. That had actually happened the morning after Regina's visit, after watching as the brunette packed everything while Emma was siting bemusedly on the bed. It had been Emma who asked, and Regina had responded by climbing back onto the bed and kissing Emma senseless.

She boarded the Amtrak Northeast Regional and got comfortable. She had a long 4 hour ride ahead.

* * *

Mary Margaret was going to be picking her up, and as soon as they saw each other, they practically ran to hug.

"Emma! I haven't seen you in a while!" Mary Margaret exclaimed as soon as they broke apart.

"I know! Thanks for doing this Mar," Emma said once they started to walk over to the brunette's car.

"It's not a problem, trust me, from what I've seen from Regina ever since she started to talk to you, you're making her look like she's the luckiest woman in the world."

Emma let out a bark of laughter, and then said, "Actually, I think that role is mine."

They continued to laugh and catch as they rode out of the train station. Due to Emma's good timing, she had arrived just in time for Mary Margaret to go and pick up Henry from school. Their conversation had now shifted to jobs for Emma.

"I think Ingrid would like you, and she's needing help with her daycare." Mary Margaret was a primary school teacher, and the school building she worked at had a daycare right beside it, which included after-school programs as well as a pre-school program. It was quite a busy place, and apparently the owner, Ingrid, was looking for employees to help. "I've visited the place before and the children are a delight! Do you have any experience?"

Emma nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah for sure! First gig out of high school was daycare. The only reason I got the diner job was because Ruby was practically serving it up for me on a silver platter. At least kids are nice. Grouchy customers in the diner, not so much."

"Great! We can go talk to Ingrid tomorrow, how does that sound?"

"Perfect."

Soon enough they got out of the car and waited for Henry to get out of the school. It was a prestigious private school - Emma expected nothing less for the son of a big CEO - and she was impressed with the building just from the outside. Suddenly they saw the little boy running towards them, a thousand watt smile on his face. "Mar! Emma!"

Emma was sure that if he the kid had a bit more inertia, he'd have knocked her down right then and there. "Hey Henry! Long time no see! How've you been?"

"Good!" he responded, with all the enthusiasm a 7-year old could have. "Does mommy know you're here?"

"It's a surprise, speaking of which, let's go to your home and get things ready for when she's done with work, shall we?"

* * *

Regina was very tired by the time she got home. Emma had been apparently busy throughout the day so she hadn't gotten a chance to talk to her girlfriend, and it made her day a little bit slower. It was incredible how crucial to her life Emma was becoming. It also made her smile thinking how happy Emma made her, and Henry. Although he didn't talk that often to Emma, they still were bonding quite quickly, promising each other video game battles and board game tournaments.

"Mommy!" Henry came bounding up to meet her, practically tackling her.

"Hello sweetheart, how was your day?"

"It was awesome!" Henry thankfully still hadn't reached the point where school bored him, for which she was in no hurry to have it changed. It was incredible how quickly her little son was growing. She felt him pulling her arm. "Come on we have to go!"

"Go where Henry?" she asked as she allowed him to lead him to the kitchen. She looked and saw only Mary Margaret there, smiling sheepishly. "What's going on?"

Next thing she knew she was yelping as someone covered her eyes with their hands.

"Guess who it is!" Henry asked beside her, giggling.

Regina hummed as she felt the hands covering her eyes. It couldn't be. "Emma?" she tentatively guessed.

"Wow, one try!" Suddenly the hands were lifted and Regina whirled around to face a grinning Emma. "Surprise!"

Oh and what a wonderful surprise it was. She jumped onto Emma's arms, kissing her soundly. Henry giggled and then made a yuck face because boys didn't like kissing at that age.

* * *

The next day, Regina was coming home a bit earlier as her own surprise to Emma, wanting to spend more time with her girlfriend. Thankfully the workload had gone down a bit so she could take advantage of this opportunity. Even though she was CEO and could leave whenever she wanted, she felt that it'd be irresponsible if she took advantage of it and wasn't there if something happened. Though ever since Henry had been born, she'd leave work earlier twice a week to spend time with Henry. Always a Friday, and another day during the week, depending on how busy things were.

When she arrived, she head the distinct sounds of Emma and Mary Margaret talking in the living room, so she made her way there. She first passed by the dining room, where Henry was diligently working on his math homework, books and papers spread out around the table.

"Hi mommy! You're early!" he greeted her as she kissed the top of his head.

"I am indeed. How is your homework going? Any troubles?"

Henry shook his head. "Emma's been helping me with math!"

It was a well-known fact that Henry sometimes had trouble with math. Unfortunately it wasn't Mary Margaret's strong suit either, so that usually left Regina to help him with things. Hearing that Emma was also helping made her heart soar. "Oh really? Did you make sure to thank her?"

"Mhmm! I did!"

Regina left him to continue working on his homework, and found both women sitting on the couch, a flurry of papers spread out in the coffee table.

"And what are you two up to?"

Emma jumped up like she'd been lit on fire, her panicked expression quickly morphing into a sheepish one. "Regina! You're home early!"

Neither women made note of the fact that Emma called Regina's house her 'home'. "I am, and what is this?"

Mary Margaret was quickly trying to put all the papers together in a pile to put them away, but Regina was faster, and she snatched a piece of paper up. It was a listing for an apartment on sale in the city. She looked back to Emma, who was still frozen on the spot.

"Surprise?" Today's version of the exclamation sounded a little less sure than the one from yesterday.

Mary Margaret decided that it'd be best she bow out of this one. Leaving the papers on the table, she cleared her throat. "Well I'll be leaving now, I'll see you both tomorrow."

After the door shut, Regina reacted. "Y-you want to move here?"

Emma nodded. "Yeah, I figured that, since my girlfriend is here with her family, and there isn't anything really tying me down to Boston, I figured, why not?"

"But why don't you just move in here?" Regina asked. She already knew the answer. She had asked the same thing yesterday in relation to Emma's stay during the week. Regina had tried to insist that Emma should stay here with Regina and Henry in her apartment loft while she was visiting, but Emma had profusely declined, saying she didn't want to impose.

"I don't want you to feel like you have to house me Regina. Besides, I know for sure that I can't afford the split rent in this place."

Regina went to sit, pulling Emma to sit beside her. "Well it's a good thing I own the place then."

Emma chuckled at that, and sighed, leaning back into the couch. "I just don't want it to seem like we're moving too fast. I want to be closer to you and Henry, but I don't want it to be like a tsunami. Too much at once without any warning, y'know?"

Regina did understand, and she nodded. Even just having Emma in the same city already felt like a big improvement, so she'd take it, and hope things worked out for them.

"On the bright side, I've managed to snag a job at the daycare at Mary Margaret's school!"

"That's wonderful Emma! When do you start?"

"In the summer, apparently they're going to be pretty busy since school will be out, and then depending on how that goes, I'll continue throughout the year. Meanwhile I'll keep writing and seeing if something sticks. Maybe New York publishers are more lenient."

"I have no doubt things will work out for you."

Emma leaned in to kiss Regina. "I hope so."

* * *

**1 year later**

"And that's the last box ladies...and gent," Emma winked at Henry, who stuck his tongue out at her playfully. "I'm officially moved in!"

After a year living in New York, Emma's life had been a whirlwind. She'd managed to get a book deal with a publisher, and was fast on her way to the publishing date. She still worked at the daycare, making kids laugh. In the end she had been living with Mary Margaret for the past year, and she became fast friends with her. And since Emma was around, the Mary Margaret's babysitting days were vastly diminished, which she was thankful for, especially when David came around for a date.

Emma still kept in constant touch with Lacey, who was now dating Ruby after the two finally managed to get around their nerves. Granny had been thinking for a while of expanding her establishment to New York City, and she was currently working out a deal to have Ruby take ownership of a diner here. Emma was hoping things would work out, since that would mean that both Ruby and Lacey would move to New York, and she'd have her friends near her again. Even Regina was helping with the deal, knowing how important it was for Emma.

Regina and Emma were still steady as ever, which is why last week, Regina once more asked Emma to move in with her. This time, Emma's response was a resounding yes, and today had been moving in day.

It had been quite a long journey to get there, but everyone was happy, and things were looking up for them. As Emma looked around the room, she couldn't help but smile. She gave Henry a discrete wink, making sure the little velvet box was tucked nicely in her pocket for later on tonight.

And to think it all started with a phone call.

**Author's Note:**

> Oh these two, always meeting in the strangest of ways huh?
> 
> I hope it didn't seem rushed at the end, but I felt like there was no point in dragging out all the conversations, plus it's pretty long as it is!
> 
> Also I can't imagine how high their phone bills must've been, but it's a good thing this is a fic!
> 
> Anyway, next up will be the Roommates AU, which will actually be a sequel of Neighbours!
> 
> Let me know your thoughts, and what you thought of this one-shot!


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